When you're running a small business, especially one that deals with the arts, it can be an emotional roller coaster. It's easy to get caught up in the day to day minutia and tangled in the myriad of feelings including self-doubt, vulnerability, and excitement - and that's just by the second cup of coffee.
As we looked through some of our year-end photos, we were reminded of just how much we did this year. We couldn't have done it without your support, encouragement, patronage, marketing help, referrals, and overall positivity. We pushed ourselves to bring you the very best that we could and strive to continue doing even more.
Click on the video below to see a year's worth of work in a 15-second recap video:
Connecting with Our People
Self-promotion feels like wet sleeves, and we are not the kind of people who prefer to "live out loud," but social media is essential for a business, especially an e-commerce one.
So, we've stretched outside of our comfort zones and shared our best and worst moments with you as we experimented, failed, and successfully collaborated.
We haven't gone viral (yet), but we have more than doubled our social media following person by person across Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok where we have found some of our most loyal clients.
We also know that not everyone is on social media, so we have made greater strides to increase our email subscribers to make sure no one has to miss out on updates and discounts.
Pushing Creative Boundaries
We have stretched creatively as well, mixing mediums and textiles and collaborating on large mountain pieces. We also have upgraded some of our equipment, enabling us to take on projects that would've seemed impossible before
We also launched our line of printed products including hometown and ocean-inspired designs on items such as totes, journals, ornaments, and notebooks.
2023's Live Events
We braved stormy street fairs (including unexpected downpour featured here), packing up dozens and dozens of pieces to bring to Ridgewood, Westwood, and Montvale, NJ as well as, Nyack, Sparkill, and Pearl River, NY to show our work live.
It's a lot of work to do these events, but we never fail to be invigorated by the feedback and support when we see familiar faces and meet new clients.
We'll let you know any upcoming dates, but in the meantime, you can visit us on our site.
Press Coverage
It's especially exciting to have gotten recognition and write ups in publications including Hudson Valley Magazine, Canvas Rebel, the Irish Star, and Redfin.
We have our eyes set on a few others this year and hope other outlets will help bring our story and work to more people.
Balancing Act
We are creating, building, marketing, and selling - all in between other jobs and a full schedule with our kids. While some days have been a grind at times, other moments have invigorated and rejuvenated us, so it’s important for us to take stock of what we’ve been able to do together.
Our house is full of sawdust and our hearts are filled with gratitude for all of those who continue to support us. We’ll continue to improve our craft and "up our game," and we thank you for joining us as we light up ‘24.
We wish you balance, creativity, and joy in the coming year. From the bottom of our hearts, THANK YOU!
~Kevin & Margaret
Bonus Video Shorts